Tu Dors Nicole is the new film from Stéphane Lafleur, best known as the editor behind 2011’s Oscar-nominated Monsieur Lazhar (JDIFF 2012).  It’s a comedy that comes across as a sort of French Canadian take on Frances Ha, but also stands as its own unique, and equally brilliant, beast.

Nicole (Julianne Côté) is not long out of college, and having trouble sleeping. Working in a charity store, she’s looking after her parents’ house for the summer, which would be more of a novelty if she didn’t live there. Nevertheless, she’s looking forward, with best friend Veronique (Catherine St-Laurent), to having the place to herself. Except that her older brother Remi (Marc-André Gronin) has the same idea, and has set up shop with his band.

Lafleur maintains a bouncy, consistently funny tone that you’d describe as featherlight were there not real weight grounding it all. He has a talent for making comedy work visually, and as you might expect from a former editor, a sense not just for landing a joke, but for creating a unique and distinctive rhythm.

Oliver Lyttelton
The Playlist

 

Please note that the festival is over 18s only